Black Swan
by emeralddusk
Summary: Tori endures the suffering it takes to be beautiful. Contains disturbing psychological content and anorexia.
1. Chapter 1

**My dream was having this be an iCarly, but I can do a better job with this.**

**Beauty and the Pain that it takes...Dreams and what they take to Survive...The Mind and how it Breaks**

Black Swan

Chapter One: Ballerina Girl

"One, two, three, four," commanded the instructor, harshly staring at the girls. She was so thin, so tall, so perfect. Her hair shined under any light, and her bone-thin body seemed so distant from human. The flawless, violet leotards she had on were like second skin, and her form was perfect as she rose herself up and down and up and down on her right leg, never seeming to tire.

Among the other girls in the ballet class, an eight-year-old Tori Vega tried so hard just to keep up, to stay in sync with the others. To be perfect. Up and down, up and down. The child felt her feet begin to throb, her legs ache.

That night, nine-year-old Trina walked into Tori's room, and angrily crossed her arms over her chest. It was eleven o'clock, and she was still practicing: Up and down, up and down, holding onto her bedpost for support. Tori's face tensed up, frowns flashing across her face, and her neck bulging out in odd lines. Outside, the sky was dark, the stars were shining weakly.

"Tori, go to bed," Katrina begged, her young voice laced with anger. "I can't sleep with the noise."

"I have to keep practicing, Trina," Tori replied, not breaking her cycle. "I have to be as good as the other girls."

Katrina let out a defeated sigh, then stomped off to bed, leaving her little sister to keep up her obsessive routine.

By the time Tori turned twelve, she was still deeply devoted to the art of ballet. Her body was thin, but not close to the way she wanted it. Unlike Katrina, the girl's face had lost almost all of its chubbiness, and was growing more mature. Most nights were spent awake, going over countless forms learned in class.

Tori's feet bled, her ankles throbbed, her eyes were blood-shot for the longest time, and she was suffering from fatigue, but she would never stop. However, no matter how much she practiced, the girl knew she'd never be like the others in her class. They'd always be thinner, more beautiful, more graceful, and be able to endure so much more than she ever could.

Snow fell outside, each frozen fleck of dust made its way from the sky, and stuck on to the ground. The winds howled through the city, frosting over the windows with dramatic designs as their icy presence chilled the glass. Tori clenched the wooden bar attached to the wall in the studio, softly, gently lifting her right arm in the air, then gracefully bringing it down by her side. The lights felt so hot, but she had to keep going.

"Victoria," called an assistant instructor, her voice calm. "What are you still doing here? Class let out an hour ago."

"I have to keep practicing if I wanna be a good dancer," Tori replied, still in her cycle.

The woman walked over to the girl, and crouched down beside her, slightly below eye level. Tori stopped doing her exercises and looked at the woman. "Sweetie," she said, sounding so loving, so understanding. "It _is_ important to practice...But you're working yourself to death. Just take a little break. Okay?"

"Okay," Tori replied, nodding her head.

Approving of the child's answer, the instructor smiled, then walked away. "Do you need me to call your parents?" she asked, turning back for a second.

"No, thanks," Tori answered. "They should be here soon." Once the woman left, the girl continued doing her routine, knowing full-well that her parents were out of town, and her sitter had no idea she had left. Fortunately, Katrina would cover for her no matter what happened.

Several weeks later, the ballet instructor declared that the class would be putting on a production of The Nutcracker Suite. Everyone was excited, but no one as excited as Tori. To be able to perform Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, to feel beautiful: It was all too great to be real. Like a shining dream that only a child could fathom.

"Try-outs will be held next week," the instructor said. "Only the best dancers will be given starring roles. Do your best."

_Do your best. _Those words burned in Tori's mind like a wildfire. They were so simple, but so impossible to understand.

"I have to be the best I can be," Tori told herself, staring at her flabby, unappealing self in her mirror. Her stomach was too fat, her legs too stubby, her hair course, and her eyes as dull as a block of lead. "...I'm ugly."

"Victoria," her mother called from downstairs. "Time for dinner."

"I'm not hungry," the girl lied. Her stomach began to ache and rumble. Tori cradled it with her hands, like a sobbing infant.

On the day of the audition, the girl was starving and a little dizzy. Despite all of this, though, she was strong, determined. Clad in a pink tutu, Tori tip-toed forward, her white ballet shoes not making a sound on the shined wooden floor.

"Next up," called a black-haired woman wearing a thick black coat. "Tori Vega."

"Here I am," the girl replied, walking in front of her instructor and the black-haired stranger. Tori joined her hands in front of her stomach, which was still too big to be proud of.

"Whenever you're ready, Ms. Vega," the black-haired woman said, remaining cordial.

Tori nodded, feeling it improper to not give some sort of reply. The girl rose to the tips of her toes, and began to recite the dance steps from the Sugar Plum Fairy scene. Her movements were graceful, well-rehearsed. Suddenly, a sharp pain flashed through Tori's forehead, and she began to lose her balance. Stumbling down to her knees, the girl clenched her forehead tightly.

Several of the girls gasped, no one knowing what was wrong. Her body breaking its usual graceful pattern of movement, the instructor ran to Tori's side. "Are you alright?" she asked, clearly concerned.

"Yeah, yeah," Tori answered, trying to rise to her feet. "I just...have a headache."

"Do you wanna lay down?" asked the instructor, helping the girl to her feet.

"No," Tori shot back. "I'm fine. Can I try the dance one more time?"

"Okay," the instructor replied, her voice unsure. "If you think you're alright."

"I am," Tori answered, getting her balance back. "Thank you."

The girl took in a deep breath, and continued dancing, fighting through the pain she felt. The lights shined on her, and she could feel the music flow through her. It felt like electricity, dancing such a beautiful dance, feeling competent for once in her life.

"I've seen enough," interrupted the black-haired woman. "You have the part!"

Tori felt her heart float. "T-thank you," she said, her voice quivering with happiness. "Thank you so much."

Come opening night, the lights were so bright. Outside, the night was bitter cold, and the snow was tearing at any exposed skin it could get at. The stage was so big, the props and sets so complex and beautiful. Tori walked inside, standing in front of Katrina and their parents.

Tori's mother helped her out of her coat, showing off her new ballet outfit.

"You look so pretty," Trina complemented her sister, having been deprived of seeing Tori before they arrived at the auditorium.

"Thank you," Tori replied, not believing one word.

With a flash, Tori found herself being hauled away on a hospital gurney, staring at the blurry sky above her. The screams she heard from her parents and friends echoed repeatedly in her ears, though she couldn't understand them right now.

"What's wrong with her?" Mrs. Vega screamed at one of the doctors. "She passed out right on stage!"

"The show's ruined!" one of the other kid's parents hollered, his voice cold and angry.

Even in this near-unconscious state, Tori knew she let thousands of people down. Her parents, her friends, her beautiful teacher, who seemed so much better than she could ever be. The girl heard her stomach growl viciously, then saw nothing but darkness.

"I'm sorry...I'm sorry...I'm sorry," Tori repeated, looking at the blurred blobs standing in front of her in the hospital. Whoever they were, whatever reason they were standing in front of her hospital bed, Tori knew she had let them down by fainting on stage. How could she ever think she could be beautiful? How?


	2. Chapter 2

**For visualization, Tori looks the way Victoria Justice does in real life, Katrina looks like Daniella Monet, Jade looks like she normally does on Victorious, but has somewhat longer hair, and is slightly more thin.**

Black Swan

Chapter Two: Prima Dreams

Being banned from her ballet class for anorexia, Victoria Vega didn't let her dream die. At the age of fourteen, the girl convinced her parents she was over her "little problem", and continued her ballet dancing at SeaView High School for the performing arts. Katrina, on the other hand, remained devoted to her studies, and attended Schneider High.

At the age of seventeen, Tori was as devoted as ever to ballet, and was about fifteen pounds underweight. However, she still viewed herself as somewhat fat. Tori was one of the best dancers attending SeaView, second only to a girl named Jadeyn West, a prima ballerina with long, flowing, dark brown hair, and a menacingly seductive look to her face.

In the city of New York, the air was cold and crisp, and a light coating of snow blanketed the ground. Inside the school's ballet hall, Tori rested her right foot on a wooden bar, pressing her leg against her body. Unfortunately, the lovely winter weather made her joints stiff. The teenager glanced over at the left section of the studio, her tightly pulled back bun hairstyle not moving an inch.

Jade was doing a dramatic dance, clad in a black leotard that covered most of her body except for her arms, and flared out into a thin skirt around her waist. The girl threw herself into a full split on the wooden floor stretching her arms far out into the air, her black-colored eye lids closed gracefully. Several students clapped for the girl.

Tori, however, merely folded her lips inward, and continued stretching. There was something about Jade that made her seem dangerous. A dark, unfathomable nature emanating from her body.

Passing by with a smug smile on her icy face, Jadeyn glanced over at Tori. "Did you have a healthy breakfast this morning?" she mocked, her voice cold. The girl continued walking onward, her body moving in a graceful stride.

Looking into the mirror covering the entire wall, Tori continued to stare at Jade's reflection, her confidence, her dark composure. The teenager then stared at her own reflection. She still saw herself as ugly, unpleasing. Letting out a defeated sigh, Tori continued to stretch herself, eager to regain the flexibility she had lost over the season.

That night, Tori spun her body on the weight of her right leg. As if on ice, the girl felt herself twirl around and around, like in a wonderful dream. Closing her eyes, the teenager let in the feeling of weightlessness, breathing in and out slowly. Ending the stride, Tori threw her left leg back behind her, put her right arm out in front of her so far her neck stretched forward, and put her left arm behind her. The girl's chest flared out, then in as she tried to silence her breaths.

Hearing a creak outside her room, Tori dropped her right foot to the ground, and turned around to see her sister standing in her doorway. Katrina was scowling coldly. "Do you know what time it is?" she demanded, her voice laced with anger.

"Yes I do, mom," Tori replied, sarcastically. The teenager continued practicing her dance.

"You can't keep doing this," Katrina continued. "It's eleven thirty, you have school tomorrow. Why are you doing this to yourself?"

"What do you care?" Tori snapped, tensing her face into a vicious scowl and throwing her foot back on the floor. "This is important to me. If you're just gonna whine at me, then you can just go."

Sensing her sister's rage and growing hatred, Trina walked away. Letting out a heavy, furious exhale, Tori kept dancing, watching herself in front of her full-body mirror.

The next morning, Tori woke up at six-thirty, her eyes heavy and blood-shot. The weight of her body great, the teenager forced herself out of bed, and went into the bathroom to shower. Hearing the hiss of the water pouring down, Tori let the warm stream hit her back as she held her arms in an x. shape over her breasts. Letting out deep but steady breaths, the girl prepared for the day ahead of her.

Feeling the icy wind on her still-moist hair, Tori walked towards SeaView. Jade's cold, chillingly beautiful face flashed through her mind. Stopping for a minute, the girl breathed uneasily, feeling fear in her heart. The girl looked forward, then continued onward.

Inside the studio, Jade was rubbing her powdered hands together. Tori walked inside, briefly glanced at the other girl, made a quick scowl, then set down her bag and started stretching. For several painful minutes, the room was silent.

"Everyone," called out the brunette instructor, running to the center of the room, her hips swaying back and forth. "I have a wonderful announcement."

Everyone in the room turned their eyes to the woman. Tori lifted herself out of her seated quad stretch, and looked at her instructor with wide eyes.

"SeaView High will be putting on a production of Swan Lake," the brunette announced, her voice accented with excitement. "Auditions will be held all this week. For opening night, we will be reviewed by over twenty talent scouts. Our show will be held at Schneider Hall. Only the very best will earn parts."

Tori took in a shaky breath, trying to contain her excitement. This would be the single most defining moment in her life as a ballerina.

"This'll be fun," Jade said, her voice icy and cocky. "Won't it, Tori?"

Looking at Jadeyn with an open-mouthed, confused expression, Tori tried to ponder what the dark-haired girl was getting at. _What did she mean? Why me? _the teenager wondered.

That night, the sky was as black as coal, the stars were shining with dull intensity, and the wind stabbed through the air with chilling energy. Tori spun on her left leg, her hands tightly pressed into her ribs. With each rotation, the girl felt the wind course through her. Suddenly, she caught her reflection in her mirror, and dropped to the floor, covering her eyes in shame. _I'm ugly, _she told herself. _I'm still fat, unkempt, not worth anything._ Staring blankly at the carpet, Tori felt tears swell up in her eyes, and fall to the floor.

Swan Lake was about a princess named Odette, who is captured and turned into a swan by the curse of an evil sorcerer. Swan Lake is about a prince named Siegfried, who must find his wife by the time of his birthday ball. The prince is troubled by the fact that his marriage is forced and not for true love, and leaves home. In a forest, he sees a flock of swans fly by, and sets off to hunt them.

Swan Lake is about the prince seeing a beautiful half-swan woman clad in white feathers. Taken by one another, the two dance by the lake. Siegfried learns that the woman is Princess Odette, who is a woman by night, and a swan by day. Swan Lake is about the prince learning of the lake's being formed by the tears of Odette's parents after her kidnapping, and feeling pity for her, which soon turns to love. Before Siegfried can swear his undying love for the princess, which will break the sorcerer's curse, the evil man appears, and threatens to kill him. Should the prince die, his love will be under the spell forever.

Swan Lake is about the sorcerer and his darkly seductive daughter, Odile arriving at the prince's birthday ball in disguise (Odile made to look exactly like Odette but clad in a black dress), and Siegfried mistakenly pledging his love for her during a dance. When the prince sees the true Odette, he realizes his mistake, and follows her back to the lake and intensely apologizes. The princess forgives him, but the sorcerer then appears, and tries to pull the two apart. Realizing Siegfried's proposing his love to Odile has rendered the spell permanent, Odette and Siegfried kill themselves by jumping into the lake and drowning together, breaking the sorcerer's power over them, and killing him in the process.

If ever there was one, Tori was the perfect actress to portray Odette, the White Swan: her grace, her innocence. Jadeyn, on the other hand, made the perfect Odile, the Black Swan: sensual, devastating.


	3. Chapter 3

Black Swan

Chapter Three: Twisted Friendship

Jadeyn threw herself into the air, landing on the tips of her right toes with her hands in the air. The girl thrust her body backwards, curving her back towards the floor.

A man with solid gray hair scrutinized the teenager's movements. She was powerful, sensuous, strong. Everything about Jade made her the Black Swan. As the music swelled, Jade shot her body around in a circle, a dramatic, painful, passionate, open-mouthed expression on her face. Her eyes were closed tightly. The girl smacked her hand into the wall, letting it stop her violent rotation. Putting all of her body's weight on the strong brick wall, Jadeyn released and took in heavy breaths, letting her breasts flare outward, then inward.

"Excellent," declared the gray-haired man, standing up from his black-cushioned, gray-colored metal seat. "Beautiful...Passionate..."

Jade put a decievingly innocent smile on her thin, nearly-Gothic face, then walked away from the wall. "Thank you," she said, her voice sweet for once. Tori watched the teenager: so confident, so distant from what she knew. Jade turned her head towards Tori, not losing her grace. Her eyes were so sinister, so cold, so dark, almost feline.

"Ms. Vega," called the director. "Are you ready to perform?"

"Yes, sir," Tori answered, walking over to the man. The girl proceeded her way to the mirror wall, feeling her heart beat speed up. Clad in a white full-body leotard that flared up into a tutu around her waist, Tori steadied herself on the shining, wooden floor. The teen rose on the tips of her toes, and spun herself in a circle, her balance strong, and her eyes gracefully closed. Throwing herself out of her stride and forward, Tori landed on her right leg, letting her left leg point out behind her. Lying flat on her stomach like a lifeless body resting inside a morgue, the teenager slid her right hand out in front of her, brought it to her left, then gently rose into the air, her hand pointing to the sky.

The man thought deeply. Tori was youthful, free-spirited, naive. She was sheltered, calm: A fantastic project to mold, transform. Change. "Thank you, Ms. Vega..." the man said. "Captivating performance."

Nervously, Tori nodded, flashing a smile across her face, too nervous to speak. The girl walked away from the mirror, and sat down on the floor, leaning against the wall. Looking up into the air, the teen breathed in and out, trying to relax herself. Everything was riding on that man's decision.

That night, Tori lay awake in her bed, staring at the ceiling. So much depended on this: her future, her dreams. Outside, the wind was raging through the skies, filling the teenager's ears. Her stomach was ravaged, feeling like waves during a tsunami. Even though they were blood-shot and throbbing, Tori couldn't close her eyes. Hot beads of sweat began to form on her forehead and back, burning her flesh. Tears blurred over the girl's eyes. _I can't do this, _she thought, an agonizing lump forming in her throat. _I can't take this._

The following morning, snow filled the air, blowing violently. Accompanying this was an icy, piercing wind that numbed the flesh. Clenching her collar close to her throat, Tori walked towards SeaView, her breath heavy as her body slowly chilled. Finally, she reached the door, and walked inside, feeling the temperature around her grow warmer. The teenager walked into the bathroom, her breath still heavy. Turning on the hot water in the sink, Tori stared into the mirror. A hot stream of water poured onto her fingers, sending blood back into them. While she rubbed her hands together, the teenager caught something out of the upper corner of her eye, and shot up, seeing nothing but her own reflection staring back at her, open-mouthed and wide-eyed. Shaking the shadows out of her mind, Tori shut off the water, dried off her tender hands, and walked towards the ballet hall, her heart rate and pulse speeding up.

Inside the studio, the room had an unfathomable heir of coldness to it. Ringing the large mirror covering the wall was a thin layer of fog. Reflecting off the polished wooden floor was the inspiring light from the ceiling, the spotlight, the thing every dancer dreamed to have shining down on them. Looking around the room, still somewhat disoriented, Tori walked over to the clear wall, and gently sat down.

Several others were already there. One of which was Jade, who looked as cool and shrouded in shadowy composure as ever. The teenager glanced over at Tori, a small, sinister smile on her face as her dark hair gently swung sideways. Ignoring her, Tori clenched her teeth in an uneasy fashion, and looked away.

"Ladies and gentlemen," called the gray-haired man. Every eye in the room turned to the director. "...The new Odette has been chosen..."

Tori felt her heart plunge into an unimaginable, shadow-filled depth.

"This woman must be able to be graceful and innocent like the White Swan..." began the man. "...But dark and sensuous like the Black Swan... Have their beauty, their passion, their essence..." For that instant, all time seemed to freeze. The room was completely silent. "Welcome...Ms. Tori Vega."

Feeling her heart soar, Tori stood up, unable to catch or understand her breath. Every nerve ending in her body surged with sharp electricity, and her jaw dropped, quivering uncontrollably. "T-thank you," she said, her voice trembling.

Walking through the hallway, Tori tried to keep a smile from tearing onto her face. Jadeyn passed by her, moving at a great speed that carried a wind with it. The dark-haired girl's eyes met Tori's. "...Congratulations," she said darkly and seductively, but with meaning. Tori continued staring at Jade as she passed by, not looking back. Victoria kept her mouth open, watching in deep shock.

That night, Tori sat on a chair in her room, holding her hand out. Katrina pushed her fingers together in the silver handles of the manicuring scissors, clipping off her sister's overgrown finger nail.

"I can't believe this," Tori excitedly exclaimed, practically jumping out of her chair. "I'm gonna be Odette and Odile. This is my dream."

"The Black and White Swans," Katrina replied. "Are you sure you're ready?"

"All my life," Victoria answered, growing somewhat short.

"Well, I guess I of all people would know that," Katrina replied, her voice beginning to shake. "After all, who's the person you kept up night after night doing your routines over and over and over again? The one who got dragged to every one of your recitals" As her voice turned into a snarl, Trina's grip on the scissors tightened, snapping off some of the inner section of her sister's nail.

"Ow!" Tori exclaimed, keeping her voice at a low volume as the flash of pain coursed through her finger.

"Oh...Tori, I'm sorry," Katrina replied, pulling her hand back. "I didn't mean to..."

"It's fine...it's fine," Tori interrupted, gazing at her nail, which still carried a dulling pain.

"Let me get the rest of them," Trina said, grabbing her sister's hand, only to have it pulled back. "You're a ballerina...You have to take better care of yourself...You have to be beautiful." Feeling Tori's surrender, Katrina continued to cut the girl's nails, steadying her breath.

Tori gazed over at her older sister, a shocked and hurt look in her puppy-dog-like eyes. It wasn't like Katrina to get violent, or to complain about her sister's ballet. Something didn't seem right.

The following morning, Tori sat down on a wooden bench inside the local mall, leaning her head against the wall, feeling her long, soft, light brown hair gently rub against the textured siding. _I can't believe I made it, _the teen thought to herself. _Everything's going right._ Thinking more deeply about her statement, Tori felt an unsettling thought creap into her mind: _I can't be Odile...Her power, her confidence...her dark beauty. Jade..._

"Hey," said a young woman, shattering Tori's concentration.

Shooting her head towards the girl, Victoria felt her hear take a slight jump. "Jade," she said, trying to control her shock. "W-whatter you doing here?"

"Same thing as you, I guess," Jadeyn answered. "Thinking about Swan Lake..." The dark-haired teenager sat down next to Tori. "It's really interesting...Seeing you as the Black Swan." Jade closed her mouth for a second, then folded her lips inward. Even now, the girl seemed so distant, so above human.

Tori couldn't help but wonder why..._Why was Jade acting like this? Why was she so interested? Shouldn't she hate me for getting the lead role?_ "Um...thanks," Tori replied, nervous and confused. "It's like a dream...But I think I'm more like Odette than anything else."

"Hmm," Jade replied, nodding her head, her dark brown hair gently waving around her neck. "Hey, I think we got off to a bad start... I'm really sorry."

"...Oh, um, it's okay," Tori said, falling deeper into confusion and bewilderment than ever before. "I feel bad, though...You should've been Odile."

"Maybe..." Jadeyn replied, her voice dawning an almost sickly-sweet tone. "But you need to be one swan...to be another. And I don't think I can be anything more than the Black Swan."

Tori looked down at the floor, feeling a sudden emotional low.

"But you..." Jade continued, her voice practically a whisper. "You can change...You can become everything you need to be...to be the Black Swan."

Tori felt every word frost onto her heart. Jade's words were so hard to fathom, but so assuring, so calming.

"Come on," Jadeyn invited, getting up and walking away. Tori felt a burn to follow her, as if it was how things were meant to be. The two walked away together. _The Black and White Swan._


	4. Chapter 4

Black Swan

Chapter Four: Becoming

Tori and Jade sat inside a dimly-lit bar. Smoke lined the air as the two sat on stools by the counter. Throughout the entire building, an essence of darkness existed.

"Are you sure we're allowed to be at a place like this?" Tori asked, feeling a nervous tension well up inside her, though her worries were overpowered by something else. Something deeper.

"Nah, they don't care," Jadeyn answered. "Come on, you have to relax." The dark-haired girl looked at Tori with concern in her dark, shadowy eyes. "Hey, what's that on your arm?"

Tori glanced down at her arm, seeing a small red patch outlined in a sickly orange. "Oh, I-I don't know," she said, feeling a dull sense of confusion. The girl looked up at Jade, a slight look of weakness on her face. "I don't know what's up with me lately." Tori pulled down her sleeve.

"Hey,... I have to go..." Jade replied after a painful minute of silence. "But...I'll see you around." The girl grabbed her bag, and departed. _Be the Black Swan, _Victoria could hear her whisper.

Several days later, practicing for the production began. Every dancer was feverishly preparing their routine for opening night. The air was filled with heavy breaths, and great tension filled the minds of everyone.

"Ms. Vega," called the gray-haired director. "Would you follow me onto the dance floor, please?"

Tori enthusiastically followed the man onto the shining, wooden floor. There, the man sharply turned around, and boldly stared her in the face. "Show me everything," the gray-haired man demanded, clapping his hands together.

Nervously jumping into place, Tori nodded in compliment, and threw her hands out, spinning in a circle, twirling her left and right arms around her. A nervous expression stained her lovely young face.

"Come on, Tori," the director yelled, his pleads imposing great pressure into Tori's mind.

The teenager spun faster, driving her hands into her ribs until it hurt. Her breath began to grow heavy. Tori ducked her back downward, keeping up her rotation, then threw her head backwards as she rose up.

"Seduce us!" the man yelled. "Attack it! Attack it! Come on!" Feeling his anger, her own failure, Tori tried to improve herself, tried becoming sensuous, but to no avail.

"Stop," demanded the man. "Stop!" The voice echoed throughout the hall, causing a moment of silence.

Freezing dead in her tracks, Victoria swallowed hard, and lowered her head, shamed. "I'm sorry," she said, her voice heavy with guilt. "I just...I don't know how..."

"That's right," the director interrupted. "_You _don't know how...The only one standing in your way is you." The words burned, and Tori stared down at the floor. "Look at Jade," the man whispered, pointing at the dark-haired girl, who was moving beautifully, powerfully.

Jadeyn held her eyes closed tightly, and thrust her body one-hundred-and-eighty degrees, holding onto a cold metal bar. An imaginary wind forced her dark hair in front of her eyes, but she continued on.

"Look at how she moves," the man continued, his voice cold. "Her power, her sensuality...And she's not faking it." With that, the director departed, leaving Tori stained with a sense of failure.

Jade ceased her dancing, her gorgeous, thin body relaxing, and looked at Tori, shocked. Victoria gave a slight wave, feeling embarrassed. Jade gave a confused, somewhat irritated face, then returned the gesture. The dark-haired girl continued her dancing.

Inside, Tori felt herself sink to a new level of shame, and dropped her head, trying so desperately to avoid eye contact with anyone. After practice, the sky outside was black, painted with light streaks of dark blue. Victoria leaned on the small white desk in her boxed-in mirror space, putting all of her body's weight on her elbows. Light streams of tears stained her cheeks as she stared at her unsightly reflection.

"Hey," said Jade, grabbing Tori's shoulder.

"Oh," replied the girl, quickly wiping off her face, then turning around. Seeing Jade was a gust of warm air on a black, freezing day. "Jade. Hey."

"Kinda rough today, huh?" Jadeyn continued, her voice sympathetic. "Come on, I know what you need." The dark-haired girl walked away. Tori sprang up, and followed her friend.

Running through the snow, Victoria and Jade felt every individual flake hit their faces, hearing the crunch of thin ice below them. The wind was cold, and the stars were glowing like blue emeralds.

"Come on," Jadeyn giggled, pulling on Tori's arm. The two ran faster, feeling adrenaline flowing through their veins. The two laughed like little girls on their way to the park.

Later that night, Tori pushed open the door, walked into her room, threw her bag on the floor, shut the wooden door behind her, and lept onto her bed, exhausted. Suddenly, the girl's eyes shot open, remembering what was truly important...

Leaning forward, keeping her left leg straight, the brown-haired girl pressed her hands to the floor, and thrust her right leg into the air, keeping her eyes locked on the floor. Her body now in the shape of an upside down Y., Victoria breathed in and out, controlling the light pain she felt in her joints. Hours passed, but she kept up her stretching. Finally, her joints throbbed, her eyes were blood-shot, and even moving seemed like a struggle. Dragging her powerless body to her bed, Tori collapsed atop the sheets, and faded into darkness.

Tori, clad in a marvelous, shining white leotard that flared into a feathered tutu around the waist, delicately pranced forward, her arms flowing up and down like waves on the ocean. Her hair was tightly pulled into an eloquent bun, and the entire area was black. A dark aqua spotlight shined down on her from nowhere. Tori's breaths were silent, and her movements fluid. Suddenly, in a flash of darkness, Victoria was dressed in a darkly beautiful dress, thrusting her body forward, her arms out to the wind. She was a shadow, a lovely, dangerous flash of blackness. Closing her eyes and throwing her arms behind her, Victoria felt the spotlights shine on her back, illuminating her powerful features. _You're my sweet little girl, _she could hear her mother say. Feeling a painful weakness, Tori jolted forward, her eyes tightly closed. _You're supposed to be beautiful! _Katrina yelled. _My sweet girl, my sweet girl. You're supposed to be beautiful! Beautiful!_ Tori shot her eyes open, feeling cold sweat cover her body. The room was so dark, so lonely, so cold.

Pulling herself up, Victoria covered her eyes, and breathed in and out so heavily. Disoriented, not even the concept of time seemed to make sense anymore. Tori sat still, not daring to uncover her eyes. Soon, the night died, and dawn arrived.

During rehearsal, Tori revisited the dream in her mind time after time. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't become what she was in her fantasy. Suddenly, she felt someone touch her.

"I'm with you," whispered the director. "Can you feel it?"

"Yeah," Tori replied, her breath heavy.

"What do you feel?" replied the gray-haired man.

"I feel you," answered Tori in a whisper.

"No," the man said. "Don't feel me...feel my touch...and respond to it."

Victoria closed her eyes, and thrust her hands out at her sides, lifting her head towards the sky.

"Become her," demanded the director. "Become the Black Swan!"

Feeling his grip fade, Victoria threw herself forward, twirling around in a never-ending rotation, her body violently spinning. Suddenly, Jade's face flashed in Tori's mind, and she fell to the ground.

"Victoria!" called the man, kneeling down beside her. "Victoria, are you alright?"

"Yeah, yeah," Tori answered. "I just...lost my balance for a second." Tori pulled herself up onto her knees. "Sorry."

"Maybe you should...call it a day," replied the director. With a slight aura of disgust, the man walked away.

Tori stared at the gray-haired man, her eyes wide open with sorrow and her jaw dropped. As others danced around her, the teenager remained on the floor, shamed.

That night, Victoria stayed in the studio, dancing until her feet throbbed. No matter what it took, though, she was determined to improve herself. The shame had to fade away: she had to vindicate herself. _What happened to me today? _she asked herself. Finally finding herself out of breath, the girl stopped.

_The only one standing in your way is you. _Tori felt despair enter her heart. Turning to face her disgusting self in the mirror, the girl felt her heart skip a beat. Jade stared back at her: her eyes were so cold, so sinister. A sickly sweet, mocking smile was painted on the dark-haired girl's chillingly beautiful face. Tori gasped, her mouth gaped open.

Running away with all of her might, feeling like she was in a nightmare, Victoria charged out of the room, and passed through her personal mirror. Continuing onward, the girl passed by the stage, the part where the curtains hide. A dark figure was crouched down on the floor, remaining still. Stopping for a second, Tori gazed at the being, her mouth open in shock.

The black figure rose up, revealing its black body to be covered in feathers. A grotesque, blue, bird-like face stared back at Tori, a hostile expression in its black eyes. The girl screamed, then ran away as fast as her body would allow: it all felt like a nightmare, the kind where you can't run no matter how desperately you want to escape something.

"Tori!" called Jadeyn, her voice desperate. "Tori, please!" The dark-haired girl chased her friend, a look of confusion and worry on her face. Finally, Jade caught up with Victoria, and grabbed her shoulder, turning her towards herself.

"Leave me alone!" Tori screamed, terrified.

"Tori, what's going on?" Jade begged. "I can help you."

"I just...I don't know, I..." Tori babbled. Jade suddenly, put her hands gently on her shoulders, and pulled her towards her body. Tori felt Jade's cool lips press against her own, and her fear subsided.

Pulling away, Jade stared deeply in Tori's eyes. "Come on," she said, her voice calm but weak. The girl walked away, and Tori followed.


	5. Chapter 5

Black Swan

Chapter Five: After Me...

_Last night felt like a dream...I remember every feeling, every touch..._

Tori and Jade sat in a restaurant. The lighting was dim, and light, romantic music emanated from no where to be found. Everything was calm: the nightmare was over.

"I saw you at practice earlier today," Jadeyn said, her voice light and down to earth. "Looks like somebody's hot for teacher."

"I...I really don't wanna talk about that," Tori replied, showing reluctance. "It's kind of embarrassing."

"It shouldn't be," Jade replied, a smile coming onto her face. "You're gorgeous...People should see that." Jade's words were so comforting, so more than anything Victoria could give herself. "After all...that's what it means to be the Black Swan."

Taking in those words, Tori felt herself come to a deeper understanding of her character. _You are the Black Swan, _Jade's voice whispered. _Embrace her._

"I think I get it now," Tori replied, her voice practically in a whisper. The girl smiled at her friend.

"Come on," Jade said, standing up, a large smile on her face. "Let's have a dance." The girl grabbed Tori's hand, and pulled her up. "But first...let's give you a new look."

For what seemed like an eternity, Tori was surrounded in darkness. "Okay, open your eyes," Jade said, excited. Tori's eye lids parted slowly, and she was greeted by a girl who seemed so much like her, but so different: her hair was long, individual thick strands over her ears, and shining with an ominous light. The areas surrounding her eyes were covered in pointed black mascara, making them bold and dramatic, and so sensuous, so alluring. Her lips were painted over with thick red lipstick.

"Wow," Tori whispered, shocked to her core by her beauty.

"Let's go," Jade replied, pulling her friend away from her breath-taking reflection, and out to the dance floor.

Red and green lights were flashing, filling the dark room. Everyone was throwing their body back and forth, passionately following the intense music that coursed through every inch of the building. The crowds were immense, and the energy was flowing through the air.

Jade blended into a crowd, threw her arms in the air, and began shaking her hips side to side powerfully. "Come on, Tori," she called. "Show them what you are! Show them the Black Swan!"

Tori gazed down at the captivating black dress she was clad in, and began to dance like she'd never dreamed. She was dark, mysterious, fearful. Everyone was going to be dying with every step she took, every breath she took. "Give them everything!" Jade yelled, no longer seen by her friend. Victoria threw her body forward, winding up inches away from a young man with unkempt black hair and a shadow climbing up to his sideburns on both sides of his startled face: he was her puppet. Then, the girl stroked his chin with a quick glide of her hand, then, twirled away, leaving him shocked and helpless behind her.

The lights flashed viciously, leaving a ravishing impression on Tori's beautiful face. She was cold, confident. Spinning, the girl caught something out her eye: it was blurry, but it meant something. Ignoring it, Tori continued her dance, engrossing the entire room. She felt their energy. Putting an icily confident smile on her face, the teenager made the entire dance floor hers. It was amazing, a fantasy.

"Amazing," Jade said, keeping her eyes forward as her and Tori walked down the snow-painted sidewalk, feeling the lovely pieces of art hit their faces in the form of snow flakes.

With a white flash, Tori found herself in Jade's pink bedroom, with Jade standing in front of her, a cold, confident look stained on her face as she leaned in and kissed her. Victoria felt herself grow weak: Jade was like a jem formed in a dream. So powerful, so dangerous. "Jade," Tori whispered. "I-I don't think I'm ready to..."

"Sssh," Jadeyn replied, putting her pointer finger over Tori's lips. Her voice was so calming, so unfathomable. The dark-haired girl wrapped her warm arms around Tori's back, and pulled her onto her bed.

The two soon found themselves stripped down to their underwear, Tori in her white t-shirt and panties, and Jade in her white bra and pink panties, kissing one another.

Tori shot her eyes open, and lifting herself up to see her reflection staring back at her. She was clad in her white tights, her hair pulled back in a complex bun.

"Tori," greeted Katrina. In response, Tori shot herself around, returning to full consciousness. "Tori...what's that on your back?"

The girl looked behind her, and saw sickly, light-orange streaks going down the outer sides of her back. "I-it's nothing," Tori answered, feeling herself grow nervous.

"Come on," Katrina replied, ignoring Tori's comment. "Let's go home."

The two departed into the gray city, and returned to their apartment. Blowing viciously at their faces was a bitter, cold wind laced with thousands of icy snowflakes. Once inside their apartment room, Tori removed her tights, and began to walk to her bedroom.

"Hey, wait," Katrina called, following her younger sister. Tori stopped and turned around. "Tori...are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Victoria answered, growing short. "Thanks for taking me home." The girl walked into her room, and shut the door.

Katrina stared at the dark brown object separating her from her sister. No matter what Tori said, there was definitely something wrong.

Hours passed, then, inside her room, Victoria stared at her reflection in the mirror. The girl was clad in a soft, loose-fitting white shirt, her hair parted on the right and pulled behind her ears. _What's happening to me? _she asked herself. ..._No matter what it is..I have to be the Black Swan._ Suddenly, the girl saw something out of the corner of her eye, turned away from the mirror for a second, then looked back and saw herself: truly saw herself. Her stomach was flabby and disgusting, her hair was frail, and her features were so dull. Tori clenched her teeth together, a look of growing terror on her face, then clenched her head with her hands, pulling them back over her hair with great pressure. The teenager let out a horrified scream that made her throat throb. Furious, Tori thrust her fist into the mirror, shattering the glass and creating thousands of copies of her reflection. The girl tore off her clothing, leaving her clad in nothing more than her panties. Grabbing one of the razor-sharp shards left on the floor, Tori stabbed the glass into her abdomen, and slid it across her stomach, leaving a thick red line. Raising the shard above her breasts, the teenager made another long slit. Blood began to drain from the wounds. Tori dropped her head in shame, and closed her eyes. _I'll never be beautiful..._

The next morning, the air was filled with the sense of depression. Everyone was putting their heart and soul into their dance. However, Tori could barely move away from the wall. Time seemed to go by so slowly. Come nightfall, the girl was the only one left in the studio, or so she thought. Her passion for ballet weak, Tori departed, passing by the director's office.

Giggling sounded from inside the door: Jade's giggling. Tori stopped short, and subtly glanced through the window, and was greeted by true horror: Jadeyn and the director were violently kissing one another on the floor. A look of ecstasy was painted on Jade's cold, beautiful face. Taking a trembling breath out, Victoria turned around, her eyes blurring over with hot tears, and charged away. _I can't believe it... _she cried in her mind. _She betrayed me...she destroyed everything._

Embraced by the cold night, the raging snow, Tori ran into a taxi, and slammed the door. "Get me away from here," she demanded. The door opened on the opposite side of the girl, and Jade entered, her hair neatly in place, but her eyes weak.

"Tori," she pleaded, her voice devastated. "I'm sorry. I just...I didn't mean it."

"That's a load of garbage," Victoria snarled, her face burning with hatred. "You meant everything. You used me...betrayed me. Get out!"

Jadeyn stared at the girl with dark eyes. "You don't get it, do you?" she said, her voice cold. "I'll never leave you alone...I'll never let you go." The dark-haired girl grabbed Tori's hand, and slid up her arm. Her embrace was icy, malevolent...but so consuming.

Tori leaned her head on the seat behind her, her eyes closed as she took out a struggling breath. "Why?" she whispered, growing weak. Jade didn't answer. At the next block, Victoria exited the vehicle, and charged towards her home, her eyes burning with freezing tears.

Her heart throbbing, the girl kept running until she reached her home, her sanctuary. Not knowing how to escape her nightmare, Tori charged up the stairs. Once she reached the next floor, the girl ran with all of her remaining strength. For a few minutes, everything was black. When the girl came back to reality again, she saw Jade's devastating face staring down at her.

"Hey, Tori," said the dark-haired girl mockingly.

"H-how do you know where I live?" Tori replied, her voice trembling. Unlike anything she'd ever felt before, this was true terror.

"I have my ways," Jadeyn answered, a sick smile growing on her face. "...Come on, Tori...we're one and the same." The dark girl stepped closer to Victoria, her presence striking terror into every nerve ending in the teenager's body.

"Leave me alone!" Tori screamed before charging away from the girl. Viciously striding towards her home, the teenager threw open the door, slamming it behind her, then ran into her bedroom.

...As a child, Victoria and her mother used to paint. They painted the faces of their loved ones, of one another. For years, the pictures had remained as precious pieces of Tori's childhood. Suddenly, every being imprisoned on the sheets of paper dropped their jaws, letting out horrified screams. Black ink bled down their surfaces.

Witnessing her dearest memories shatter in front of her, Tori clenched her hair, feeling fear freeze over her heart. "Stop!" she begged, screaming at the top of her lungs. Desperate to take away the horror, the girl tore down every picture hanging on her wall: every face torn apart. Knelt down on her knees, Tori shakily breathed in and out, feeling her eyes well up with tears.


	6. Chapter 6

Black Swan

Chapter Six: Sweet Girl

Victoria laid in her bed, her body weak and powerless. The room was warm, all time seeming slowed inside of it. Slowly returning to consciousness, the girl felt her mother gently stroke her hair, just like she did years ago. "Wake up, sweetie," Tori's mother whispered, her voice calm. "My sweet little girl."

Victoria slowly opened her eyes, and saw her mother standing in front of her. The room was dark: she didn't know about last night. "Hi, Mom," Tori said, her voice hoarse but gentle. "W-what time is it?"

"Seven o' clock," Mrs. Vega answered. "I thought you could use some more sleep than usual."

"Oh, Mom," Victoria replied, getting out of bed. The girl's voice was growing fierce. "I have to get up early. My practice is at eight, and I need to practice more than the others."

"Why's that, honey?" asked Mrs. Vega.

"Because I have the lead role, I'm one of the worst dancers at my school," Tori listed, her voice raising to a furious snarl. "Is that enough of an answer?"

"I...I will not be spoken to like that, young lady," Victoria's mother replied, growing upset. "...And what is that on your back?"

Tori glanced at her back, the part not covered by her thin Italian t-shirt. The orange streaks running down her sides had grown larger, and now looked like cuts.

"It's because of the part, isn't it?" Mrs. Vega insisted, growing angry. "I knew it was too much pressure on you. You're not sleeping at night, you have this horrible rash on your body,...and you're not respecting your father and I."

"Mom, get out of my room!" Tori hollered, her anger reaching a climax. The teenager sprang out of her bed, and got in her mother's face.

Depressed over her daughter's sheer disrespect, the look of hatred on her young face, the memories disappearing after so long, Misses Vega turned around, and departed from the room.

Staring at the door her mother slammed, Tori stood still, feeling so cold. _This isn't me..._ she thought. _Who am I?_ Entering the bathroom, the girl looked in the mirror, and felt shattered. Her reflection was so brutal, so painful: her skin was so dry, her eyes blood-shot, and her hair looking like it melted from its once-beautiful self into a frizzy, practically flat puddle of light brown fabric atop the girl's head. Releasing a devastated sigh, Tori turned the water on, and splashed it into her face.

In the studio, everyone was prepared for opening night, which was in only four days. Her heart in a constant flutter, Victoria rested her right foot atop a poll, stretching her leg until it ached. After what felt like an eternity in an hour, the gril finally felt normal again. Glancing over at the director, Victoria saw Jade standing next to him, feigning innocence. Suddenly, the gray-haired man walked away. Feeling anger burn in her neck, the teenager left her stretch position, and walked towards the dark-haired girl, practically stomping her feet. "What was that?" she demanded.

Jade turned her head towards Tori, a look of anger on her cold, devastating face. "He made me your alternate," she answered, so grave, so serious. With that, Jadeyn departed.

Left all alone with her heart in pieces at the news she'd just recieved, after everything Jade dared to put her through, Victoria stood still, unable to walk. Someone approached her, seemingly coming out of no where. "Excuse me," greeted the girl. Her hair was pure crimson and as long as that of a Greek goddess in a painting. "Are you Tori Vega?"

"Yes," Victoria answered, confused and weak-voiced.

"The Black Swan?" the girl continued.

Not knowing what to say, Tori kept her mouth open, clueless, powerless.

"My name is Catarina Valentine," continued the red-haired teenager. "I was the Black Swan three years ago. It's an amazing feeling, isn't it? To be so powerful, so beautiful... Odile and Odette are so different...but so much the same. Odile is in another's form. She's deceptive, dark, like a beautiful, living nightmare. Odette is everything else: innocent, a maiden in distress... But Odile can't be tamed, she won't be. You have to conquer her...just like I did."

"How did you do that?" asked Tori, bewildered.

"I put myself through something I never imagined..." Catarina answered. "Be strong... I know what it's like to be replaced." With that, the crimson-haired girl walked away.

"Replaced," Victoria whispered. In every sense, that was true: Jade was the Black Swan, everything the director wanted. Tori was the White Swan, the one who had to change. Things change...As do people. _Catarina..._ Tori remembered looking at a roster for Swan Lake. Catarina was cast as the Dying Swan. "I can find her," the girl whispered, feeling a mad hope well up in her heart.

That night, Tori found Cat's changing room. For so long, the name meant nothing. How could someone like her be overlooked, though? Ignoring her curiosity, Victoria stuck the key to her own dressing room into the slot in the door, then a straightened hairpin. Writhing the cold metal pieces around, the girl was soon granted access to Catarina's room. Inside, it was all there: her makeup, her nail file, her hair pieces. Everything she needed to become the Black Swan. Sitting down at the girl's mirror, Tori gazed at her reflection, then lifted up the lipstick. After nearly an hour of working on her face, she was transformed: she was in the form of the White Swan, but in so many ways, she was the Black Swan. Her face was white, her lips painted a beautiful pink, and her hair pulled back and covered in an aqua-colored handkerchief covering it. Filing her nails down to lovely, short works of art, Tori felt like a new being. Standing up, the girl dropped her bath robe on the floor, clad in a thin, white tutu. "Beautiful," Victoria whispered.

Suddenly, Jade's reflection appeared in the mirror, drowning out Tori's. Terror struck the girl's heart. "Leave me alone," she whispered, her voice trembling. Jadeyn smiled, then shook her head back and forth, back and forth: mocking Victoria, mocking her fear and suffering.

Feeling rage replace her fear, Tori put the nail file in her bathrobe pocket, then charged away from her stalker. Running onto the stage, the girl glanced down at the rows of seats in front of her. _I can do this, _she thought, feeling power well up inside her. "No, you can't," Jade replied, so happy with her dark words.

Out of growing horror, Tori gazed at the dark-haired girl, her mouth gaped open, and her eyes wide with shock, overpowerment. "Leave me alone!" she screamed, before running away with all of her strength.

Charging down the snow-covered sidewalk, feeling the icy stabs on her exposed skin, Victoria kept running. Her breath so heavy, the steam it released into the air so thick, but she would never stop.

"Don't run, Tori!" Jadeyn called. Icy terror freezing over in her throat, the girl ran onward. At long last, she reached her apartment, and ran inside. Finally, she reached her room, and pushed the door open with all her might. Stopping dead in her tracks, the girl saw her mother and Katrina standing in front of her, looks of anger and shear disappointment on their faces. Surrounding them were the torn remains of the paintings and the shards of glass from the shattered mirror.

"How dare you?" demanded Mrs. Vega, holding up two halves of a painting of Tori's young, beautiful face. Her voice was so grave, so horrific.

"Do you really think you just do whatever you want to us, Tori?" Katrina added.

"I really don't need this right now," Tori replied, angrily walking past the two. The girl stomped into her bedroom and slammed the door behind her. Once she was alone with the darkness and her pain, the teenager began to pack up her clothes.

Throwing the door open, Mrs. Vega stood still, glaring at her daughter. "What are you doing?" she demanded.

"I'm moving out," Tori coldly answered, not turning away from her suitcase. "I'm not taking this garbage from you or Katrina anymore." With that, the teenager picked up her case, and walked towards the door.

Victoria's mother roughly grabbed her daughter's exposed shoulder, and pulled her around to face her. "What happened to my sweet girl?" she demanded, practically in a snarl.

Tori broke away from her mother's grip. "She's gone!" she screamed before running out of the room with her belongings, and Catarina's nail file. Katrina stared at her younger sister as she stormed out of the room, and into the night's darkness.


	7. Chapter 7

**Contains dark, psychological material and some graphic images.**

Black Swan

Chapter Seven: Nightmares

Settling into her new home in an apartment on the other side of town, Tori stared out at the dark night's sky, feeling the coldness through her window. She had to lie about her age to the landlord to legally get a room, but it was worth it. Resting on her new bed, the teenager remained still, fathoming what had happened. Hours passed, then the dawn finally approached. Victoria kept her eyes on the ceiling the entire night, not achieving a moment's sleep.

At practice later that morning, Tori felt empowered as she thrust her body in circles on the dance floor. "Excellent," declared the director, clapping his hands together. "You're showing wonderful improvement, Ms. Vega."

"Thank you," Tori replied, her voice confident. Out of the corner of her eye, the girl saw Jade enter the building, and terror tore into her heart. "Get her out of here."

"What?" the director responded, confused and somewhat shocked. The gray-haired man turned around, and saw Jade, not feeling able to fathom Tori's paranoia.

"She's after me..." Victoria answered, staring at the dark being proceeding towards her. "She's been tormenting me."

"She's not after you," the gray-haired man assured her, acting as a rational being. Everyone knew that the part was too much for the girl, but what could be done now? Would telling her to step down be of any good to anyone? "No one is after you. Just concentrate on being the Black Swan." The man gave Tori a quick kiss on her cheek, then departed.

Standing still, Victoria stared at Jade, watching her stride into her little corner, then begin stretching. _I know what it's like to be replaced. _Catarina's words echoed in Tori's mind. _Replaced...Replaced._ Out of fury, the teenager stormed away. Visions began to flash through her mind: her and Jade, sitting next to one another at the bar. "I love you," Jade lied. With a flash, Tori recalled the night her so-called friend handed her a thin cigarette. "I only last a little while," she told her, moving the burning, smoking end towards Victoria. The girl saw Jadeyn and the director lying on the floor, kissing like savages, then proceeding to make love to one another.

Setting her feet back on the floor, Jadeyn noticed a crumpled up piece of newspaper on the floor. The teenager bent down, picked it up, then unfolded it. In medium-sized black letters, "Ballerina Admitted to Hospital. Girl Found With Severe Injuries." The date was marked 2007. Noticing the girl in black and gray picture resembled Catarina, the girl looked off into space, growing confused.

"The old Tori Vega is dead," Victoria declared, staring at herself in the mirror that night, wearing a different face than the one she'd hated for so long: Clad in a cosmetic barrier provided by one stronger than her. The teenager then began to dance: pouring her heart and soul into every move, every violent rotation. Feeling fire burning under and inside her flesh, Tori refused to let herself rest. Hours passed, but still she fought on. Sweat trickled off of her body. Finally, the girl fell onto the ground, barely able to move or breathe.

Tori pulled herself up, and breathed heavily, staring into the darkness. Her eyes were blood red, like those of a swan. Suddenly, the teenager felt a stabbing pain in her back. "What's happening to me?" she asked herself, practically in tears. Tori touched the spot on her back that throbbed so intensely, feeling something prick her finger. The teenager grabbed the object piercing her back, and pulled it out, feeling it tearing through her bumpy, sickly-orange flesh. Gored, red skin came into sight through her wound.

Turning the lights on, the girl stared at what she held in her hand: a small, black feather. Her face coated in sweat and hued orange, Tori gazed down at the feather with her crimson eyes, then let out a shaking, terrified breath. _What's wrong with me?_ she asked herself. _What am I turning into?_ The girl felt herself let out trembled breaths, her mind becoming engulfed by fear. Victoria began to shake in fear, unable to fathom the metamorphosis she was taking on. The room began to grow colder.

"Isn't this what you wanted?" asked Jade, standing in front of the door, a cold, malicious smile on her devastating face. "You're becoming the Black Swan. You're not the innocent girl you used to be, Tori."

Her skin becoming consumed in small bumps, like that of a swan, Victoria saw new feathers growing from her arms. Letting out a scream of horror, the girl began to tear out every black strand from her body. Blood began to leak from every cut, so dark, so red. Suddenly, Tori felt an unbearable pain in her legs, and gazed down to see her joints snapping, bones breaking. Soon, her long, thin legs were bent backwards, like that of a swan. Too weak from the agony and fear, Tori fell to the floor. With all of her might, the teenager hollered, her throat burning as she reached a pitch higher than anything she could imagine. This was terror.

Jadeyn refused to move, basking in Tori's pain and terror. "You don't have what it takes, do you?" she mocked. A dark, malicious smile remained on her beautiful face, not willing to relent.

Victoria shot her head towards Jade, her red eyes glaring into her soul, and her teeth tightly clenched in a hateful scowl. Charging forward, Tori thrust her nails into Jade's cheek, leaving four long red gashes in her face. "Leave me alone!" the swan-girl screamed, furious. Tears welled up in her crimson eyes, then streamed down her sickly orange cheeks. Her breaths were heavy, trembling.


	8. Chapter 8

**At this time, I wish to express my deep love for Black Swan, Victorious, and all the gifts the Lord has given me. Writing this story has been one of the greatest privileges of my life. Thank you, Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, director Darren Aronofsky, and all those who made Black Swan possible. Merry Christmas.**

Black Swan

Chapter Eight: Swan Song

Tori awoke on her bedroom floor, sprawled out and weak. Pulling herself up, the girl saw her reflection: she was back to normal, not beautiful, but not horrible anymore. Touching her cheek gently, Victoria felt herself began to shake, unable to believe she was herself again. _No...I'm not myself, _Tori thought. _I'll never be again._ The girl thrust her fist into the mirror, then departed.

Stomping through town, Victoria gazed up at the sky, which was completely covered with dark shadows. Snow gently fell to the ground around her, and Tori felt every flake. Feeling dizzy, the girl kept walking, not knowing where, not knowing why. The icy wind began to chill her body, but she was no longer one with herself, not anymore. Continuing to walk, repeatedly playing back the memories of last night's horrific experience in her mind, Victoria kept on, blindly advancing on to some place she didn't know. Hours passed, and the sunlight grew weaker, finally leaving the skies black and accented with white stars. At last, she reached the destination: SeaView High School. Tori walked inside, and approached Catarina's dressing room. Staring at the girl's name engraved in gold letters on the wooden door, the teenager's mind began to spin: _What am I doing? Why am I stealing from Cat? What is all this leading to? I don't need her things to be the Black Swan. _Releasing a heavy, nervous breath, the girl pushed the door open, and walked inside.

The room was dark, lit only by several candles, which gave a red hue to the walls. Catarina was sitting in a soft red-fabriced chair, fixing her hair in front of her mirror. She was so calm, so peaceful. She had no idea what wrongs she had endured.

"Hi, Cat," Tori greeted, nervously stepping towards the crimson-haired girl.

"Tori," Catarina replied, looking away from the mirror for a minute, then resuming her preperation for the show the next night.

"Um, I-I'm really sorry," Victoria said, walking forward, her hands in her pockets. "I...I did something wrong to you...I've been taking your stuff. I don't know why I did it. Maybe I'm crazy, but it felt it having something of yours would make me a better swan. Sorry." The girl set the nail file in front of Catarina, letting it sit on her counter.

Seeing Cat's face in the light, Victoria noticed a tired, ravaged look in the girl's face. Her long, scarlet hair was frail, and dark bags were under her once-optimistic eyes.

The red-haired teenager stared at the file. Its dull silver exterior refracting the dim candlelights. The point on its end so thin, so sharp. For several minutes, the room was completely silent. Movements were restricted, breaths were still. Not hesitating to move, Catarina picked up the file, gazed at it for another second, then stabbed it into her shoulder.

Shocked beyond rationality, Victoria stared at the girl. Cat jabbed the red file into her throat, causing light scarlet blood to swell into a small bubble. Pulling the weaponized device out of her body, the girl positioned it over her heart, then struck herself once more. Tori remained still, her jaw dropped, and her body too shocked to function. Catarina stared through the silver blade, then stabbed herself in her face.

"S-stop it!" Tori screamed, trying with all of her might just to move.

Catarina continued to impale the silver file through her body. Soon, blood began to lace its exterior. Realizing her body could not sustain any more, the girl dropped back into chair, then closed her eyes. Tori's breath quaked as she watched the girl lay still in her chair, her body covered with scars. Everything was so quiet, so still. Time was frozen, gnawing through anything caught in its icy embrace like frostbite on exposed flesh.

Not knowing what to do, but feeling there was nothing was she could do to fix things, Tori grabbed the file, gave Catarina one last look, then departed from the room. The Dying Swan had just played her part.

The night was long, and what little sleep Tori got was painfully deep: She was in a dark reality flowing with a dark blue mist. Suddenly, a gray-haired man dressed as a prince approached her from the darkness. Tori found herself in the guise of the White Swan, ready to love the prince, and be loved. Before the two could reach one another, however, the girl was drenched in shadows, and became Odite, the Black Swan. Still in love with her, the prince wrapped his arms around her, never knowing he was destroying everything the two had ever had together. The two were then torn apart, and Tori found herself as Odette once again, causing the prince to realize his mistake. Depressed, the two felt the water they were suddenly in freeze over, keeping the two forever separated. Tori and the prince pulled out swords hidden in holders on their legs, and ended their own lives. Tori's eyes shot open, and she found herself alone in her apartment room, clad in dark sheets.

Come opening night of Swan Lake, Victoria sat in a chair in her dressing room as two women disguised her face in elaborate makeup. One of the women gently stroked her hair back, then tied it into a thin bun behind her head. A tall, almost jagged tiara was then put on her head, and the teenager opened her eyes: her entire face was as white as snow. Her lips were black, like the mouth of a swan, as were her eyes; two black, practically Gothic wings surrounding her irises.

"Are you ready?" asked someone Tori couldn't see.

"...Yes," Victoria answered, feeling confident in herself.

The lights shining down from the ceiling were so bright. Thousands of people were seated, filling every chair in the gigantic auditorium, each one expecting perfection. Tori leaned against a wall, clenching the corner, and staring at the tall, majestic, scarlet-colored curtains separating her from the rest of the world. Her stomach was sick, her hands trembling, and her heart burning with anxiousness. _This is it, _she thought to herself. _This makes the difference...This is for everything I've ever hoped for, ever dreamed of..._

As the orchestra's music swelled, the curtains opened. The actor portraying Prince Siegfried readied himself for his performance. Tori watched with deep intensity. Finally, scene two approached, and Tori entered the stage, dancing with a fire that she never felt before. Towards the end of the first hour, the White Swan lept into her prince's arms, the two shining under the spotlight and the musice at its climax. The audience roared with applause, so taken with the performance.

Once the curtains closed, Tori walked backstage, wiping the sweat off of her thin shoulders. Her breaths heavy, and her heart prepared to soar as she became Odile, the Black Swan: to embrace power, sensuality, beauty, danger, mystique. Still clad in her white dress, the girl walked into her dressing room. Jade was standing inside the room, a proud look on her icy, ravishing face, and clad in the dress of the Black Swan: the nerve, the ordacity, the ensuing fury she intended to encite.

"What are you doing here?" Tori snarled, slamming the door behind her.

"...I'm the Black Swan," Jade replied, her voice almost in a whisper. A deeply shadowed energy seemed to radiate from the girl's body. "The thing you could never be."

"Get out," Victoria replied, her rage boiling under the flesh of her neck. "You've used me, lied to me, mocked me, laughed at me...and made my life a nightmare. Now get out of my sight, now!"

Jadeyn stood still, a wicked smile on her face. Tori brought her face into a rageful scowl, her eyes burning with hatred. "_Get out!_" she hollered, her love, her hate, and all of her anguish blazing inside her like a forest fire. The teenager roughly grabbed Jade's shoulders, then smashed her into the mirror against the wall, shattering the glass behind her.

Jadeyn quickly recovered, then pushed Tori into the door. The girl sprang forward, forced her hands into the dark-haired girl's shoulders, then smashed her into the cold brick wall. Jade's legs gave out, and she sank onto the floor. As the Black Swan lept up, she grabbed Tori's arm, her grip tightening until her opponent's arm grew numb. Letting out a cry of pain, Victoria grabbed a shard of glass from the floor, then stabbed it into Jade's arm, piercing one of her veins. Black blood began to seep out from the wound, but the dark-haired girl remained still, gazing at Tori with weak, frightened eyes.

Victoria glared down at her defeated nightmare, then grabbed her black dress, and pulled it off of her. After the girl departed, Jade's form shifted into that of Tori, then disappeared.

The lights shot on, shining down relentless strems of radiant blue light onto the stage. Victoria soon entered the stage, accompanied by the evil sorceror. Her movements were violent, passionate, graceful. Siegfried saw the girl, believing her to be his beloved Odette, and danced towards her: She was everything he wanted, everything he needed, everything that would make his life right. As the Black Swan transformed her entire body into a dangerous work of art, the audience was in awe. Anything that Tori was had faded. The girl closed her eyes, maintaining a shadowy look of power on her face as a young man clad in black lifted her into the air. Putting her hands out to the air, Tori took in the emotions of everyone present, knowing they were clay to be molded by her. Once she was back on the ground, the teenager twirled herself in furious circles, creating a wind so powerful it dwarfed tornadoes. Victoria opened her eyes, gazing into the air: the Black Swan stared at her, defeated, tamed. Tori threw her arms down, her chest flared outward, then, before the audience, bodly, powerfully, sprouted two large, devastating black wings. _I AM THE BLACK SWAN, _she declared, feeling the other part of herself shatter. To end everything, the White Swan and her prince killed themselves, knowing everything they ever had was destroyed. Tori jumped off the stage as she died.

Everyone in the audience stood up, roaring with cheers and applause. Their sounds of praise echoed throughout the entire auditorium: they wanted Tori, needed her dark beauty. People's jaws dropped, their hearts sank and rose of Victoria commanded.

"She's bleeding," someone cried out, seeing Tori's blood stain the matress she landed on, feeling terrified among the hollers. Suddenly, the room fell silent. It was all so devastating, so sureal. Jade covered her mouth, staring at the girl in shock.

Tori's vein had been struck, and she was bleeding furiously. Everything turned black for the teenager, sounds blended together. Soon, the girl found herself moving. Everything that Tori Vega was had been changed, transformed into the Black Swan.

Regaining consciousness to a degree, Tori saw several men carrying her on a gurni, and the director running along side her. The walls were dark gray, dimly lit.

Feeling weak, the girl managed to mutter several words: "I felt it," she whispered.

"Felt what?" replied the gray-haired man.

"...Perfect," Victoria answered. The girl closed her eyes, and let out one final breath. Everything faded into darkness.

**Black Swan: My Musical Selection**

_1. __**Strip Me**__ by Natasha Bedingfield_

_2. __**Sometime After Midnight **__by The Airborne Toxic Event_

_3. __**A New Swan Queen**__ Composed by Clint Mansell for the film, Black Swan_

_4. __**Night of Terror**__ Composed by Clint Mansell for the film, Black Swan_

**Congratulations to Natalie Portman for taking home the Golden Globe Award for her role in Black Swan!**


End file.
